Jihadist Militants Have Captured US Anti-Tank Missiles In Syria

A car hit by a teargas canister burns as riot police use teargas to disperse Kurdish demonsrators as thousands of Syrian refugees continue to arrive at the border in Suruc, Turkey, Monday, Sept. 22, 2014. AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici Weaponry supplied by the US to moderate Syrian rebels was feared to have fallen into the hands of jihadist militants affiliated to al-Qaida after clashes between rival groups.

Islamist fighters with Jabhat al-Nusra seized control of large swathes of land in Jabal al-Zawiya, Idlib province, at the weekend, routing the US-backed groups the Syrian Revolutionaries Front (SFR) and Harakat Hazm, activists said.

Washington relied on SFR and Harakat Hazm to counter Isis (Islamic State) militants on the ground in Syria, complementing its air strikes.

It has thus been supplying them with heavy weapons, including TOW anti-tank missiles in recent months.

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said that, after five days of fighting, the moderate rebels have now surrendered to al-Nusra, which is listed by the US as a terrorist organization.

SFR leader Jamal Maarouf accused al-Nusra of treachery in a video released online, as the two rebel groups had shared cordial relations before the latter suddenly launched a surprise offensive last week.

"You have tarnished the name of Islam, and you have tarnished religion," Maarouf said, The Times reported. "Why do you fight us? Go away, fight the regime!"

The commander claimed his rebels withdrew from Jabal al-Zawiya "for the safety of civilians because this faction [al-Nusra] does not hesitate in killing civilians. We withdrew from Deir Sinbul to preserve the blood of civilians."

US weaponry has fallen into the hands of a jihadist group before. IS stole Humvees and other military equipment provided by Washington to the Iraqi army, as it conquered large parts of the country earlier this year.

IS broke ties with al-Qaida and al-Nusra earlier this year and the two groups have since been fighting each other in Syria.